My wine interest started with the 2013/2014 red burgundies on the shelves and compromise a good chunk of the wines I’ve collected. I’ve really enjoyed the wines from both vintages and it has been surprising and educational for me to watch their trajectories since. I’m curious how other people would characterize their experiences with these vintages, how recent bottles might have been, and where you could see them going in the near future. What producers you felt excelled or struggled would also be fascinating to know. Here’s my basic read on the vintages development:
2014 was chiseled with a real vibrancy and clarity of fruit when released. Now they seem to vary from a slightly more delicate version of that previous description but maybe without the same energy - to wines which seem slightly thin, even green at times. Recent bottles to me have seemed slightly closed, are they just going through some growing pains to recapture their early brilliance?
2013 was initially marginally panned as an underwhelming vintage. To me it seemed to go through an almost opposite trajectory to 2014 that started on the green side (but not close to 11s) but has put on weight and energy in bottle since. Recent 13s have been very good, occasionally exciting for me, and I’ve also seen some very positive comments from William Kelley and Jasper Morris about how the vintage is drinking.
Only recent 2013 I have tried has been a Michelot M-S-D Villages. It was quite delicious, and had me wishing for more. Sometimes it’s good to have some bottles from less heralded vintages to enjoy drinking while waiting for the monuments.
Chris, I have a similar impression of 2014. Perhaps the wines need more time in the cellar?
Just a couple of days ago I had a bottle of 2013 Hudelot Noellat Petits Vougeot. I preferred its nose to the palate, which, IMO, was on the thinner side with more pronounced acid. It could also be that this vineyard shows best in the warmer vintages.
good thread considering that 2013s and 2014s generally seemed underappreciated and can be found for better prices the last few years. i havent touched any 2014s yet but i have bottles from barthod, d’angerville, lafarge and others aging.
2013 i was late to but found some good deals on chevillon. i tried a chaignots a few weeks and it was truly outstanding. not thin at all. almost reminded me of 2010 with the right amount of balance between fruit and acid for lift. with that experience, i tried a 2013 bousselots a week or two back and had a less successful bottle but dont really see the vintage or the producer as the issue…i blame the vineyard.
i may open a 1er chambolle from 2013 this evening so ill see how that one fared.
I did a CM 13 Cras side by side with Roumier and Barthod earlier this month.
Both were open and giving. Roumier took edge because of balance and cool mouthfeel, a bit more red fruited. Barthod was a bit more wild. Noses better than palate on both. Upside but no harm in opening now.
I only have enough experience to post about wines from Damoy from vintage 2013 and 2014, I much prefer the 2013 when paired them side-by-side; specifically his Clos Tamisot…
After a surprisingly closed '13 Ramonet red recently I’m a little afraid to sample either vintage from my cellar these days, 11-12 years for ageworthy Burgundy is still in that range I tend to not have much luck with.
I´ve never been a great fan of 2013 (as others here were, I prefer 2012), but liked the 2014.
However 14 needs more time, still primary, while some 13 are sometimes more acessible, if showing the typical acidity of the vintage … (talking about the top wines).
If I drink anything younger I would take 2011, or 08 … best now are 2007s …
or 03, 02, 01, 00 …
'14’s are drinking beautifully, with plenty still in the tank. '13’s are a bit more nervy and mineral driven. Starting to drink well, but not the flesh of the '14’s.
I remember a funny post from Tom Blach, in which he gently chided the conventional “best drink up!” posts after a disappointing bottle. If a bottle sucks, is that really the best time to open it?
Burgundy goes through weird curves of pleasure, rarely the stereotypical Bordeaux rise/plateau/slow fall. If your 14’s are tight now, bury 'em for a year or four. They will most likely reward your patience.
And 13 seems to be a vintage that is ignoring the typical Window of Disappointment for many. A general rule of thumb is try to drink red burgs very young on their fruit, or bury them for fifteen+ years to appreciate their complex tertiary beauty. Wines in between are often those damned as thin and insipid.
I’m not a huge fan of 13, and I suspect the reason it’s showing well now is that it doesn’t have the material to reward long patience. So, if I had a good bottle, I’d probably target most of the rest of my 6/12 pack over the next few years.
But take my advice with a grain of salt. I’m wrong more often than right when it comes to the burgundy life-cycle prediction game.
i had a 2013 combe d’orveau from taupenot merme last night. nose was wide open and was super dark, concentrated and very grand cru-esque. on the palette, a bit muted. hard to say it was closed since the nose was so pronounced and it could be producer/bottle variation but this seemed like it was missing that extra gear. fruit was okay. probably will cool it on 2013s for awhile.
from the few bottles, id say obviously its not a memorable vintage and even with solid producers you may get some duds and some surprises. i guess ill factor this in and only scoop up bottles if they are priced right.
I think most 2014s have been shutting down fairly consistently, which isn’t unusual given the typical aging trajectory of Burgundy. 2014 is, to me, a fairly classical vintage. Some wines that were absolutely glorious a few years ago (Mugnier Fuees, Fourrier Clos St. Jacques) are now considerably less friendly.
To me 2013 has always been a very variable vintage, so it’s hard to generalize. In particular, I find wines with more stem inclusion less attractive in the vintage, but it tends to vary producer by producer. D’Angerville is very pretty right now, for example, and a recent Roty was nice, though tighter on the palate.
